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Review: Reasonably Priced Comics #2: Voyaga

The life and times of astronaut Dean Kirkland continue in fabulous and gripping fashion with writer Brandon Barrows’ second chapter of Voyaga. Part John Carter, part Tarzan, part Twilight Zone, this unique journey by man to … well, nowhere keeps the intrigue alive as Kirkland continues his journey through a world he never made.

The two greatest emotions squeezed from these black and white panels by Barrows are anxiety or curiosity – What is beyond that horizon, that very door? – and survival – Is there anything to drink or eat, that will eat me? It is the thrill of discovery that a lot of similar sci-fi scripts from both indies and pros have lost. Even the Star Trek franchise failed when they tried it with FOXTV’s Enterprise.

What was lost there is contained in Voyaga – in surplus!

Man’s battle against nature and against time is both addressed here in the little things, the minutia that makes life worth living. An appreciation for a bluer sky after stasis, the change of land topography, even to see another human face, hear another human voice: All these things Barrows has captured magnificently.

So as Dean makes his way across his former base, his reflections are our key into this world, his thoughts and feelings our only guideposts.

Ionic’s usually gorgeous cover, capturing the feel of the interior, leads to similar pages by the artist inside, reflective of the script’s mood and bringing both the passive moments (and there are many herein, but that is not a bad thing in this instance) and moments of action (Dean battles a mutant cat, for example) to vivid life.

I see a lot of comic books, and most of the ones I buy are cosmic in some sense. This work is a shot right out of Burroughs by Barrows. If you can find it, buy it and enjoy it

Also in this issue: Anthology pieces My Way by Alex De-Gruchy and Robert Durham and The Communicators by Michael Nichols and Joshua Calloway.